Traditionally, a stream of images, recorded by a single motion picture camera, or video camera, is displayed upon a screen to produce an illusion of motion. If a rotational effect of a subject were desired, one would circumnavigate the subject with a motion picture camera and display this series to simulate the rotational effect. But, how would one freeze a subject in one position, say a diver, entering the pool, with water-splashing up all around, and create a rotational motion picture effect about the frozen diver? To freeze the diver in one instant, traditionally one would need to circumnavigate the diver in almost no time (approximately 1/2000 second or less), with a super-high frame rate motion picture camera. I believe that no such circumnavigational camera device exists. If one wants to freeze, then visually rotate an even faster subject, such as an artillery shell leaving the muzzle of a large military gun, one would need to circumnavigate the speeding shell in 1/500,000 second or less. What if one wanted to walk into a room full of fluttering butterflies, have the butterflies appear to freeze in their current positions, and be able to cinematically record and display a motion picture simulated “walk” through this room of frozen butterflies? You can do these things, and more, using arrays of cameras, pre-positioned around, or through a subject area. Then sequentially displaying the records made by the many members of these arrays.
Several inventors (see examples below) have suggested methods employing arcurate or circular arrays of camera devices to capture different horizontally displaced photographic records of a subject with the object of facilitating the production, or reproduction of works of sculpture or of providing 3D still or motion picture representations of the subject. None has suggested, or, in my judgment, anticipated the methods and mechanisms to produce the useful and novel frozen effects described above and other kinds of effects described below in my specification.
Examples:
Examples:SmithU.S. patent   891,013June 16, 1908Ives,U.S. patent 1,883,290Oct. 8, 1932Ives,U.S. patent 2,012,995Sept. 3, 1935Staehlin et alU.S. patent 2,609,738Sept. 9, 1952StraussU.S. patent 2,928,311March 15, 1960Collender,U.S. patent 3,178,720April 13, 1965Glenn,U.S. patent 3,518,929July 7, 1970Matsunaga,U.S. patent 3,682,064August 8, 1972Collender,U.S. patent 3,815,979June 11, 1974Danko, Jr. et alU.S. patent 4,010,481March 1, 1977Collender,U.S. patent 4,089,597May 16, 1978Collender,U.S. patent 4,158,487;June 19, 1979Ross,U.S. patent 4,199,253April 22, 1980MoriokaU.S. patent 4,239,359Dec. 16, 1980
It is one of the objects of my invention to provide a mechanism and method to capture and display a motion picture-like rotational effect of an animate subject, like looking at a revolving statue of the subject. This subject can be rotated upon any existing and ordinary motion picture screen, or television screen to simulate the visual effect of walking around, and visually inspecting a statue of the subject.
Another object of my invention is to use novel shapes and dispositions of camera arrays in combination with new methods of assembling and presenting these records to produce other novel effects. Camera array shapes, such as, but not limited to long chains of cameras, in linear, or curvilinear arrays are employed. These arrays can be operated in synchrony or non-synchrony to capture different angular visual records of a subject area. These different records can be sequentially displayed to create the novel visual effect of traveling linearly, or curvilinearly along the chain, through a frozen moment of time. The effects will be similar to the tableaux effects in theatrical plays. Animate objects like people are frozen in time, yet one character gets to move through this moment.
A more generalized object of my invention is to provide powerful, new visual and/or aural perceptions of the world, employing methods in which arrays of various receiver devices, such as, but not limited to, camera devices, or microphones, or combinations thereof, capture different angular records of energy emanating from a subject of interest. Which arrays are of many and variable shape, e.g. circular, arcurate, linear, curvilinear, dome-like, or many other shapes. Which arrays are comprised of members that can be individually manipulated, positioned, aimed, and operated, before and during energy capture, by hand, or by remote control, or remote computer control, in synchrony or non-synchrony. Recordings made by the many array members are captured, manipulated, and combined into many and variable sequences, and presented according to methods described below to provide said novel visual and/or aural perceptions.